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Saturday, March 28, 2015

Principle: Self-government in and through Christ leads to liberty.We were sure blessed to hear from Sister Daniela Larsen this last week. She encouraged us to commit to life-long learning and to adopt the attitude of a life-long learner. She also asked us to consider what our "Why" is - Why are you getting an education? She said that your 'why' matters a whole lot more than your 'how' or 'what.' She referenced a great TED talk by Simon Sinek called "Start With Why." She taught us a whole bunch of really great things and it was really wonderful to hear it all!

This week we begin our readings of "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. You will be so glad you read this book!!! I read this book for the first time as an adult several years ago, and I remember exclaiming how I wish I had read it many years before, and how I thought everyone ought to read this book for all the good it can do for individuals, families, and societies - even the world! Don't miss this opportunity!

NOTE: While we've known that there are quite a few editions of this book out there, it has come to our attention that there are quite a few versions out there. For the purposes of our class and the unity of our discussions, we feel it would be best to read a version that is as close as possible to the one linked to above, and shown here to the left.

The requirements for earning Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master level work are as follows:Apprentice: Read an hour's worth of the readingsJourneyman: Finish the readingsMaster: Finish the readings and write your thoughts and insights/inspirations in your Truth Book about the readings in a meaningful way. Remember, this is YOUR education!

The inspirement for this week:Read the first installment of "How to Win Friends and Influence People" which is Part I Chapters 1-3, keeping in mind the requirements for earning an A, J, & M. (see above)We encourage you to underline things in this chapter that you like or think are important, and write your thoughts or questions in the margins. Dig in to these chapters and you will be amazed at all the riches you'll find! (see reading schedule below)

Saturday, March 21, 2015

You all should have received an email letting you know that you'll need the book "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie and that we'll read it all by the end of April. If you haven't yet acquired a copy of that book, it is highly recommended that you do so you can stay on top of the reading schedule(see below.) Our study of this book will be fascinating!

For the next few weeks the inspirements are going to be a little different.

The requirements for earning Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master level work are as follows:Apprentice: Read an hour's worth of the readingsJourneyman: Finish the readingsMaster: Finish the readings and write your thoughts and insights/inspiration in your Truth Book about the readings in a meaningful way. Remember, this is YOUR education!

On April 2nd we have a real treat for you. The author of the book "Latter-day Responsibility", Connor Boyack, will be coming to speak to us in Core Leadership. In preparation for his coming we'd like each of you to read the chapter on Education from his book. This chapter is one of the foundational resources of our commonwealth and is really excellent!

The inspirement for this week:

Read the chapter "Education" from Latter-day Responsibility, keeping in mind the requirements for earning an A, J, or M. (see above) An email will be sent out with the chapter. Mr. Boyack has given us permission to share this chapter with our students.You'll want to read and finish this chapter this week so you can get started on "How to Win Friends and Influence People" next week.We encourage you to underline things in this chapter that you like or think are important and write your thoughts or questions in the margins. Dig in to this chapter and see what gold nuggets you find!

Below is the reading schedule for "How to Win Friends and Influence People." Please acquire this book asap and be ready to begin reading it next week. You will be sooooo glad you read this whole book!!!! The things you learn will come in handy in so many ways in your life!

Friday, March 13, 2015

We sure enjoyed listening to Sister Michal Coombs as she taught us about how blacksmithing relates to learning and growing, and more specifically about being humble and teachable. We sure appreciated her coming and sharing with us!

This week, we'd like you to stretch and focus the things you've learned about humility into its great aspect of being teachable. As you do these inspirements, think about what it means to be teachable, and how being teachable relates to leadership.

1. Do a word study on the word(s) teachable/teachableness.

1.
Look up the words up in Webster 1828 dictionary. (It is also available online.) Select the definition
for your focus. Write the definition in your Truth Book.

2. Underline key words in your definition that stand out to you and define them.

3.
Look at how the original word is used in Scripture/ Conference
addresses (not in general quotes or other articles, at least for this
purpose). Write any new insights or definitions.

4. Rewrite the definition in your own words and how you are going to apply it.

2. Read or watch "Being Teachable" by Elder Robert R. Steuer.Write your thoughts/inspirations in your Truth Book.3. Read this short article "How Do I Maintain a Teachable Attitude?" by John C Maxwell. His focus is on being teachable in terms of leadership. He says, "When I teach and mentor leaders, I remind them that if they stop learning, they stop leading." Why do you think this is so? Write about this and your other thoughts about his article in your Truth Book.

4. Read this short story and then write in your Truth Book about the questions following the story:

"In a public meeting the Prophet Joseph, possibly as a
test, sternly rebuked BrighamYoung for something he had done or
something he was supposed to have done but hadn’t—the detail is unclear.
When Joseph finished the rebuke, everyone in the room waited for
BrighamYoung’s response. This powerful man, later known as the Lion of
the Lord, in a voice everyone could tell was sincere, said simply and
humbly, 'Joseph, what do you want me to do?' "

A. Think back to a time in your life where you were in a situation where could have been teachable but chose not to be. Maybe someone challenged you, got after you for something, or really irritated you... What words would you use to describe how you felt in that moment? B. Now think to a time when you were in a similar situation and chose to be teachable. What words would you use to describe how you felt in that situation?C. Which emotions/feelings feel better? Why?D. Why do you think it's so easy to not be teachable?E. What can you do to become better at being teachable in those situations?

5. Watch these videos and consider this question: What can we learn from the Savior about being teachable? Write your thoughts/inspirations in your Truth Book.

Friday, March 6, 2015

Spend
time doing each of these five inspirements:1 hour for Apprentice,1 1/2
hour for Journeyman,and 2 hours or more for Master level

You all did a great job at teaching each other about Humility last week! Nice work! This week you're encouraged to stretch your understanding about Humility a bit further.

1. Watch or read this talk from President Uchtdorf"Pride and the Priesthood." Write down your thoughts/inspirations in your Truth Book.

2. Read these scriptures to understand how the Savior showed humility and write your findings in your Truth Book:

Whom did He honor in all his actions? (See John 6:38 and John 5:30)

How did He treat everyone, including the poor, the sick, the lonely, the repentant sinner? (See Luke 4:18, Matthew 14:14, Johnson 8:11)

3. Read this incredible excerpt fromC.S. Lewis' book "The Screwtape Letters"and see if you can imagine how the adversary uses pride to ensnare us. Write the thoughts/inspiration that comes to you in your Truth Book. Here's a bit of info to help you understand what the book is about:

"Lewis's satire is a Christian classic. Screwtape is a veteran demon in
the service of "Our Father Below" whose letters to his nephew and
protege, Wormwood, instruct the demon-in-training in the fine points of
leading a new Christian astray."

4. Listen to the hymn "Be Thou Humble"and read the words, ponder on the feeling and the meaning behind this song (over on the right side of the page you can click on 'vocals and music' if you'd like.) Write down your thoughts/inspirations in your Truth Book.

5. Read through these"10 Ways to Develop Humility"and consider one of them you'd like to work on. Write
about it in your Truth Book and work on it during this coming week.
Come ready to class next week to share something you've learned from
this exercise.